Cider mishap....advice needed

[LJ Gold]

Hello,

So this is my first batch of home brewed cider. Everything was going great. Tonight, I went to rack to secondary, when I realized my auto-siphon didn't fit in my 1 gallon test batch. That was not a problem and I used the tubing and the bottle filling end with old fashioned suction. I was able to pause before racking into my spices and clean the end. Everything was going well when I adjust the tube in the primary and all of a sudden the bottle filling end flew of and I had cider spilling all over the floor. Now I only have 2/3 of a gallon of really great tasting dry cider that I had planned in leaving for another 2 weeks. Now there is a lot more air space. Can I still leave it or should I say "screw it" and drink it this weekend and hope some of the spices soak in?

Any advice would be great!

 

[dawn_kiebawls]

If you were only planning to 'age' it for 2 more weeks on the spices then I don't think the headspace will be AS big of an issue. If you were to let it age for several months or longer I would probably top it up with some fresh juice and let it ferment again.

I would just move forward as planned, though. How long did it sit in primary?

 

[CKuhns]

If from primary to secondary and perhaps still has a little residual sugar then you will have some CO2 still being produced and or should have some CO2 in suspension and should release a bit to cover the liquid and not be too big a concern while sitting on the spice.

If completely fermented- I would consider transferring it to another smaller container or even 3 quart jars to remove the headspace. Oxidation even after only a few days does have an impact on taste.

 

[madscientist451]

Congratulations on your first batch and that it came out tasting great.
Get some glass marbles or something similar, sanitize them and drop them into your cider jug to eliminate the air space. But if the cider tastes good now, I'd say just go ahead and drink it and start another batch.
If you want to use 1 gallon jugs for storing/aging, use a bucket or something similar for primary and make 1.25 or 1.5 gallons. Then when you rack to secondary, you'll have plenty to fill up the jugs.

 

[Nick Z]

You could throw in a small amount of sugar (say, a tablespoon or so) to restart fermentation and produce a little CO2 to try and purge the headspace. The amount of lees and yeast produced should be minimal, as would the increase in gravity.

 

[Hoppy2bmerry]

If you can get a can of wine preservation gas to use problem is solved. Though drinking it, isn’t at all a bad idea.

Welcome to the forum!